Periye: Central University of Kerala hosted the inaugural lecture under the 'Distinguished lectures series CUK' in collaboration with Kerala University of Health Sciences with the talk of Nobel laureate Prof. Edvard Moser, who was a winner of 2014 Nobel prize in Medicine or Physiology. Moser explained the role of grid cells of the entorhinal cortex of the brain with the spatio temporal coordination.
Hippocampus and the medial temporal lobe are involved in the formation of new long term declarative memories and navigation. The Entorhinal cortex is the major source of input for the hippocampus. The entorhinal cortex gives rise to two brain functions that are fundamental to our ability to make sense of the world: the ability to translate the continuous flow of impressions and events into separate experiences with unique addresses both in space and in time. Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disease. It starts from the entorhinal cortex and grid cells are the special neurons in the entorhinal cortex are the very first in the cerebral cortex to die in Alzheimer's disease. This cell death starts decades before the earliest symptoms are noticeable.
"Our sense of space and time are among the very first brain functions that are impaired in Alzheimer's. If we are to understand what causes Alzheimer's, we need to identify the early mechanisms of the disease in the particular area where it occurs. We need to uncover reliable biomarkers of the disease which we can use to develop an early diagnosis. Knowledge about the very first route the disease makes may enable us to intervene in the process and stop the disease before cells die and brain functions starts to unravel," said Edvard Moser.
This discovery imparts foundation for development of prognostic tool to predict the Alzheimer's disease. Pro. H. Venkateshwarlu, Vice-Chancellor, Central University of Kerala, Dr. Mohanan Kunnummal, Vice-Chancellor Kerala University of Health Sciences spoke. Dr. Swapna S Nair delivered the welcome speech and Dr. Arathy Nair proposed the vote of thanks.
